The Differences Between Good and Bad Dreams
by TailsMoon
Summary: As Ed begins to have a sequence of dreams that seem so real, he begins to start losing his hold on what's fiction and what is fact.


So, Ed is around 15. This is before Hughes or any of that happens. And just because I can't remember which office Mustang was in at the time, we're going to say he's a Colonel and in a one room office with everyones desks nearby.

The first part of my chapter is extremely similar to my oneshot "Edward's Dream" but after forever an idea popped into my head on how it could be longer.

* * *

Inside Roy Mustang's office, all was as orderly as possible. Roy even had most of his paperwork done. That's when a soft knock came from the door.

"Come in," Roy called out.

A teen with blonde hair walked in, quietly, his eyes hidden by his hair. A large suit of armor followed him in.

"H-hello Colonel," the armor said.

Everyone in the room had stopped what they were doing. Not once had they ever seen Ed come in quietly, let alone knock first.

Ed walked straight up to the Colonel's desk and put down a file.

"My report for the mission you assigned me," Ed said in a soft voice, and then turned to leave.

He had reached the door when Roy made a comment.

"You're behaving today Fullmetal? I'm impressed that someone of your _size_ in reputation could even be this quiet."

Ed didn't even react. He just walked out the door, closing it behind him like any normal person would.

A strong silence filled the office. Al laughed nervously. Ed had just left him there.

Roy Mustang became serious.

"Alphonse, what was that all about?"

Everyone else in the room looked questioningly at Al.

The armor looked down and started to tell them. "W-well, I'm ashamed to admit it, but, I don't know… He was just fine last night, but when he woke up this morning he was like that."

Roy laughed, "So you're telling me he had a nightmare?"

"Um, I guess? That's all I can think could have happened, after all, I was sitting nearby the whole night."

Another moment passed. Then everyone else started to laugh. Even Riza could barely contain her laughter.

Little did they know, they weren't that far off. It really had been a dream that had thrown Edward Elric off his game. But it had been no nightmare.

Contrary to everyone's belief, Ed was actually happier than he had been in years. He wasn't really sure what had caused his dream, seeing as it consisted of things that were out of this world. Literally. Ed's dream had taken him to a castle in the sky, the Earth visible above the many spires and, if you looked over the side and below, you could see the stars.

Although the castle had been out in the darkness of space it had still seemed to be lit up. The sun and moon did nothing to effect its light.

The dream itself hadn't been anything in particular, Ed had just walked around the castle, looking into its various rooms. Some had held normal items, others held some of the strangest things Ed had ever seen, there were bathrooms, bedrooms, storage rooms, a kitchen, you name it, it was there. The kitchen couldn't be called normal though, seeing as how if you opened the pantry, it was empty. Not to mention the size of the kitchen. If you just mentioned any type of food however, it would appear on a shelf.

Ed had discovered this when he had said aloud, "What the hell? There aren't even any bread crumbs in here!" Sure enough, a pile of bread crumbs appeared. Ed had pulled back in surprise, but shortly figured out the rule. He'd gotten himself a slice of apple pie that way.

The best part of Ed's dream was that it hadn't felt at all like a dream. Even after he had woken up, he could swear that he could still taste the pie and that he wasn't hungry at all because of it. He even skipped breakfast, something he usually would never do.

"Big Brother, wait up!" Al yelled from down the hall.

"Hmm?" was Ed's response as he turned.

As Al caught up to Ed, he put a hand on Ed's shoulder in order to stop him from walking away.

"Big Brother, what's wrong?"

"What do you mean?" Ed asked, genuinely confused.

Al was taken aback. "B-but you've been sulking all day! You didn't even get mad at the Colonel!"

"That's weird. I looked sad or something? I've been in a GREAT mood all day!" Ed responded, putting his hands on his hips and smiling. He then turned and started walking away again.

For the rest of the day, Ed was basically back to normal, the dream's effect on him wearing off.

The next day however, Ed woke up grumpy.

"What is it this time, Big Brother?" Al asked, following Ed on his way to the library.

"Nothing at all."

Of course, Ed wasn't lying. He hadn't had any dreams that night, and he had realized only after waking up that he wanted to go back to that castle in the sky.

* * *

Mustang called Ed into his office. As Ed slammed his way through Mustang's door, shouting "The hell do you want?" Ed noticed the looks those in the office were giving him. Al had agreed to wait in the library.

Ed glared at them as he walked by, marching straight up to Mustang. "I was just here YESTERDAY. What in the world do want today?"

"I see you're in a better mood today, Fullmetal. Did you get over your nightmare?"

Ed suddenly flushed with anger. "You called me in here to say that?"

Mustang became serious. "No, I called you in here to make sure my subordinate was still fit for the job."

"Are you saying I can't have a good day every once in a while?"

"A 'good' day? We're talking about yesterday, when you were throwing a tantrum."

Ed couldn't believe his ears. He had known Al had thought he'd been upset, but Mustang had as well? Edward stared at Mustang for a moment before he couldn't hold it any longer. He started laughing.

Mustang's reaction was immediate. "I'm sending you in for a mental evaluation." As he said this, Mustang began filling out the necessary forms. It seemed to him that the Fullmetal Alchemist had finally reached his breaking point.

Ed's laughter died down a little, but he was still snickering. "No, no… You've got it way wrong! I was in a great mood yesterday! Not even seeing you so early in the morning could ruin my day."

Mustang frowned. "Are you meaning to tell me that you weren't depressed yesterday?"

"Happy, for once."

"You didn't kick my door in."

"Kicking your door in makes me feel better…. Relieves stress as I visualize kicking your face in."

"You knocked."

"It's a door. I'm supposed to knock."

"You handed your report in on time."

"Mustang, I was in a good mood. I didn't feel like pissing you off because you'd probably work to piss me off."

"And the short comment?"

Here, Ed froze. He stared at Mustang for a minute. "When'd you call me… 'short'?" Ed muttered under his breath "And the hell with that! I'm not short!"

Mustang raised an eyebrow. "So you're telling me you actually _missed _hearing a short joke? That's unusual."

"You're admitting to calling me short, bastard. Don't make me punch you in the face."

Mustang stared Ed down for a moment before deciding that he was telling the truth. "You can leave now, Fullmetal."

"That was ALL you called me in here for?"

"You're dismissed."

Ed began stomping his way out of Mustang's office when Havoc spoke up. "Hey, Chief! What was that dream of yours about anyways?"

Ed stopped for a second before answering. Ed's evil smirk crossed his face as everyone in the office stopped working to listen. "It was my dream, not yours. Besides, even if I told you it wouldn't seem nice to any of you." Ed paused for a moment. "In fact, I'm not really sure why I liked it so much."

"That means it must have been a _short_ dream."

Ed slammed Mustang's office door behind him as he stormed out screaming a few curses back at Mustang.

* * *

Sometime in the middle of the night, as Alphonse sat reading next to a lamp while he waited for Ed to finish sleeping for that night, Ed returned to the castle in the sky.

When Ed "opened" his eyes to see the castle again, finding himself laying in one of the beds in one of the many bedrooms, Ed smiled.

As he lay there, relishing the soft, warm comfort of such a luxurious bed, a sense of loneliness washed over him, and if there was one thing that Edward Elric didn't like, it was feeling lonely. Ed moved to get out of the bed, running his right hand over the soft blankets one more time as he stood, his feet cold. That's when it hit him. Not only could he feel the blankets with his right hand, but his left foot was _cold_.

Ed stared at his replenished appendages in shock. He hadn't noticed anything of the sort the night before.

"The dream changed?" he wondered aloud.

Al looked up from his book at his sleeping brother. He had heard a muttered "The dream changed?" He had thought Ed had woken up for a moment, but after seeing that he hadn't, Al went back to reading.

Ed walked around unsteadily, his left foot seemed almost asleep. It caused him to trip and fall once. Ed's cheek obtained a scratch from the table he barely managed to avoid bouncing his whole head off of. Ed gave up on wondering through the castle and wondered out onto one of the balconies towards the base of the castle and looked down past the courtyard and out into space. He clinched his hands into fists as he leaned against the railing.

Even with part of Ed's goal being given to him in the dream and him being in such a beautiful place, all Ed could think was that he didn't deserve a dream like this while his brother was awake, unable to sleep or to dream because of him.

Ed tried willing the dream away, and it faded, leaving him in the calm darkness of deep sleep once more.

Ed opened his eyes, this time because the morning sunlight was shining through the dorm room's curtains. The chair where Al had been sitting as he had fallen asleep was empty. Ed realized it was much earlier than he would normally have woken up so Al probably wasn't worried about saying good morning yet. In fact, he was probably out looking for stray cats or out getting a new book.

Ed got out of bed, stretching. He felt a bit down, but not much. As Ed took a sleepy step towards the bathroom, his leg gave out. His left leg. Ed feel to the floor, sitting up as quickly as he could.

"**!**"

* * *

Hmm. I feel like this could have been written a little less… blandly? It turned out alright though I think. Hope you're enjoying the story so far!


End file.
